Free mushroom talk at North Hawai'i Education and Research Center

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo North Hawai'i Education and Research Center (NHERC) in Honoka‘a hosts a presentation on “Mushrooms and Other Fungi of the Hawaiian Islands” on Tuesday, April 12 at 6:30 p.m. in the NHERC Conference Room.

The presentation will be given by Dr. Brian Perry, assistant professor of biology at UH Hilo, who has been studying fungal diversity around the globe since 1996. Today, Perry and his students are focusing their research efforts on documenting the fungi of the Hawaiian Islands and understanding the numerous ecological roles these organisms play in our environment.

“Estimates of fungal diversity suggest that we have discovered less than 5 percent, and in some estimates less than 2 percent, of the fungi present on planet Earth,” Perry said. “Here in Hawaiʻi, similar estimates indicate that the Islands may harbor close to 30,000 species of mushrooms, molds and other fungi, yet fewer than 700 species have been identified, to date.”

In addition to discussing fungal diversity and ecology, Perry will highlight results of his current research on Hawaiian fungal ecology and diversity and discuss his future research plans in Hawaiʻi. See: http://www2.hawaii.edu/~baperry/

Perry’s presentation is the fifth in the popular NHERC 2010-2011 Wildlife Evening Lecture Series.